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Wednesday, September 17, 2014

Cheesy Kielbasa and Potatoes Recipe

There is nothing like a delicious sausage and cheese concoction, let me tell you. From breakfast sausage, to sliced Italian sausage, to kielbasa, the flavor is out of this world, especially when combined with other delicious ingredients--cheese, in particular.

Sausage, cheese, and onions is a recipe that I pretty much grew up on. My father always referred to it as "sausage slop" and it was one meal that I requested quite a bit. It's sinful and delicious, but being that I'm on a diet, I had to improvise. This recipe takes the carb value down a notch by replacing breakfast sausage with turkey Polska kielbasa.

Look at that creamy deliciousness! This is definitely one of my favorite "indulge moment" meals. It's warm, hearty, and perfect for any day of the week. It takes about 45 minutes to prepare and about 20 minutes to cook. I'm sure you're finished with all of my rambling, so let's get to it, shall we?

(Printable version of this recipe at the end of this post.)

Ingredients

Potatoes, 3 medium

Kielbasa, 14-16 oz

Cheddar cheese, 3 oz (I use a reduced fat cheese block)

Onion, 1/2 medium

Mini sweet peppers, 3 small

Dried parsley, 1/2 Tbsp

Canola oil

First, you'll want to rinse and peel your potatoes.

Get 'em nice and clean.

Remove the skin. Some people like the skin, so I suppose it'd be fine leaving it on, too.

Cut the potatoes in half, long ways, right down the center.

Next, cut them into thirds.

And then cut chop them again into small little cubes.

Err...something like cubes, anyway. About one inch is perfect.

Next, toss them into a pot of water.

Turn the heat to high, and bring to a boil. Boil the potatoes for about 5 to 10 minutes, or until they're tender enough to stick a fork through with a little effort. Keep checking on them! You don't want them too soft, or else they'll mash when you're mixing them. Not very pretty.

While those bad boys are boiling, go ahead and slice your kielbasa. You can slice them thin or thick, however you like them.

Set them aside, and chop up your onion and your mini sweet peppers.

Delicious little peppers, they are.

Now, go check on your potatoes! Are they okay? Good.

Heat up your skillet on medium-high with a little bit of canola oil.

And add in your kielbasa, peppers, and onions.

Saute the onions until they are transparent and then reduce the heat while you wait for your potatoes to finish softening up a bit.

Your potatoes should be close to done by now. When they are, carefully drain the water, and then spray them with a little cooking spray. Toss 'em up to get it on all of them. Don't leave any of them out.

Mmm, nice and oily.

Toss the oiled potato chunks into the pan with the kielbasa, peppers, and onions.

Mix it up nicely and turn the heat back up to medium-high. Cover the delicious mixture, and let it cook, stirring frequently to avoid burning.

Add a little bit of parsley (mainly for color).

While this lovely concoction is heating up, you can go ahead and start cutting the cheese. Heh. Get it? Cutting the cheese? Er...okay, yeah...

I use about 3 ounces of cheese for this recipe, cut into cubes.

Toss it in with the kielbasa.

Let it melt nicely. Stir it up a bit.

Look at that, melting like a witch in holy water! Almost done!

Once the cheese is all the way melted, all you really have to do is heat it through, and then serve!

Rinse the potatoes. Peel the skin, if you'd like.Cube the potatoes.Place cubed potatoes into a pot of boiling water. Heat to boiling. Continue to boil for 5 to 10 minutes, or until potatoes are tender enough to stick a fork into. You do not want them too soft, however, or they will mash when mixing them in with the kielbasa.Heat a skillet up on medium-high heat, with a little canola oil.Slice kielbasa, and dice mini sweet peppers and onion. Toss them into the skillet and cook on high heat until the onions are transparent, stirring frequently.Drain the potatoes, and then spray or drizzle with canola oil, tossing until well-coated.Toss the oiled potato chunks into the skillet with the kielbasa and vegetables.Cover and allow to sit for 5 minutes. Continue stirring frequently until warmed through.Add a tablespoon of parsley into the mixture. Stir.Reduce heat and cover.Cube cheese. Toss in with the kielbasa and potatoes, and allow it to melt, stirring to distribute evenly.Warm thoroughly and serve.